Case draws parallel to Indian American Purvi Patel case.
By Raif Karerat
WASHINGTON, DC: Police are launching an investigation after a dead newborn was brought into a Syracuse high school and dropped off at the nurse’s office in a backpack.
At a news conference on Wednesday, Syracuse Police Chief Frank Fowler revealed that the baby’s mother is a student but declined to reveal her name or age, or the baby’s gender. The official did disclose the baby was dead before it was brought to Nottingham High School on Monday.
“At some point, the nurse alerted the police officer and they discovered that the backpack contained the deceased baby,” he stated. As of Wednesday afternoon, however, officials had yet to determine how the newborn had passed, according to Time Warner Cable News of Northern New York.
“It’s not crystal clear to us what happened,” said Fowler. “We have an obligation at this point to find out exactly what occurred and that’s the purpose of our investigation.”
While the investigation is ongoing, Fowler said his department has worked to respect the girl’s rights.
“We’re talking about the fact that a young lady who attends this school has given birth and we’re talking about the fact that this baby is deceased,” said Fowler. “This is a medical issue. So, it’s a very sensitive subject.”
The case unfurling in Syracuse draws certain parallels to that of Purvi Patel, the Indian American woman from Indiana who ingested abortion pills to get rid of an unwanted pregnancy, gave birth by herself in order to hide it from a strict, orthodox Hindu family, and threw the new-born fetus into a dumpster behind their restaurant.
Earlier this year, Patel was sentenced to 20 years in prison for feticide and child neglect. However, her case has courted widespread controversy and caused an international uproar due to the apparent criminalization of her pregnancy. She is currently in the process of filing an appeal.